to have me fired. Or if one of the original four principals one being Jasper, the others Addy’s uncles, wanted me out. Financially, I’d be more than fine. I’d invested wisely. And with Matt’s help, I’d followed his lead buying and flipping houses. Though, I’d kept a few after I’d fixed them up and they had renters in them. If I had to, I could sell my house, downsize into something more appropriate, and use the profit to buy a few more houses.
I’d be fine financially. But mentally, losing Triple Canopy would cripple me. I needed the routine, the brotherhood, the teamwork, the training, and it was worth repeating—the brotherhood. I held guilt for what happened in Bruit, Luke’s injury, my monumental fuck-up. For my own peace of mind, I had to find a way to make that right. But more, I needed my brothers. We were a team in more ways than blood, sweat, and battle. They were my family, my real family, not like my father and brother. I would be fucking lost without them. So, I needed to keep my calm and I probably needed to apologize to Jasper for a few things I’d said to Jason, though it would be a cold day in hell before I gave Jason a free pass—he needed to make shit right with Addy, then I would think about forgiving him for the bullshit he spewed at her.
There was a knock, then the door to my office swung open. Jasper silently entered, lifting his chin in greeting. I kept my seat and waited for him to pull a chair around the front of my desk and settle into it.
“Few things about Belview,” Jasper started and I perked up, wanting all the intel I could get. “I knew he was SF when he was dating Addy. I also knew what assignment he was being sent on. And I knew before he broke it off with her, he was going to do it.”
So much for remaining calm.
“Did you encourage him to break up with her?” I asked.
“If by ‘encouraged’ you’re really asking, did I demand it, then no, I didn’t. But when he came to me, I certainly didn’t persuade him to stay with her, which I could’ve easily done.”
Fucking shit.
“Does she know he came to you?”
“No. And I don’t want her to know.”
“Then we need to stop this conversation here,” I told him.
“Because I can’t trust you to keep a confidence?”
Was he for real?
“No, Jasper, because you can trust I will not lie to Addy.”
He nodded and his stare turned knowing. Jesus, fuck me, I had to hand it to him. The man had been out of the game for a long time, yet he still had it. I fought the urge to squirm under his heavy scrutiny and wondered if that was the father in him or the warrior. My guess—both. He’d found a way to mold those two together and the effect was enough to make me want to look away.
“I’m gonna be straight with you, Trey. I like you. I think you were a good operator, you served honorably, I’ll forever be grateful for your role in saving Liberty, and I think you’re an asset to Triple Canopy.” Jasper paused and I braced for the ‘but’ I knew was coming. “My son was out of line, but he was not wrong.”
There it was.
I wasn’t good enough for Adalynn.
Fuck, that stung. And before I could stop my hand from moving as if it had a mind of its own, it left my desk and landed square in the middle of my chest.
“His delivery was piss-poor, but his concerns valid.”
“Right,” I ground out through gritted teeth. “Just so you know, she’s staying with me until this is over.”
“I’m thinking she should come home and stay with her mom and me.”
He would think that, but he was wrong.
“Obviously, you can talk to Addy about that, but she made herself clear so I’ll reiterate what I told Jason and what I promised her. No one, including you or her brother, are going to make her do a damn thing she doesn’t want to do. She didn’t want me to bring you in on this. Please don’t make me regret my decision.”
“What the fuck does that mean?”
Well, here goes nothing.
It wasn’t like I had to worry about Jasper’s approval. I didn’t have, nor was I ever, going to get it.
So, really, I had not a damn fucking thing to lose.